Peter Baker of The New York Times reports that at the National Prayer Breakfast last Thursday morning, President Obama called out nations repressing religious minorities and stated that promoting international freedom of faith is a central goal of foreign policy. “History shows that nations that uphold the rights of their people, including the freedom of religion, are ultimately more just and more peaceful and more successful,” Obama said. “Nations that do not uphold these rights sow the bitter seeds of instability and violence and extremism. So freedom of religion matters to our national security.”